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man may seem to all appearances a masterful man, but within himself he is nervous and edgy like a stealthy thief. A thief may acquire the external trappings of a wealthy man, but within himself he is still a thief, all his reflexes and reactions are of a thief.
Therefore, so long as you remain unaware of your true identity, no matter what ceremonies and rituals you practise, no matter what external tokens and symbols of religion you display, it will all be a mere show; like the borrowed jewellery and finery, they are not your own and your inind will never be at ease. Like the unhealthy, bloated flesh of a sick man, they are signs of an inner canker. Endeavour, therefore, to cultivate this inner strength. A lean physique is more powerful, more healthy than a fat, bloated one.
Once a very lean and fragile-looking man approached me and said: “I am prepared to work for you eighteen hours a day. I weigh only ninety-eight pounds, but my physique is not soft like a ball of cotton wool; it is lean, but hard and compressed like the cotton wick of an oillamp.” If you put a ball of cotton wool in a vessel of oil, it will soon be saturated and become soft and pulpy and will sink to the
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